RTI International Extends Work Strengthening Education in Indonesia

In a related USAID project, RTI trained more than 20,000 school stakeholders and worked with 70 district governments to improve education management in Indonesia.

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. — As part of efforts to promote high-quality teaching and effective school management in Indonesia, RTI International will be the primary partner for the Prioritizing Reform, Innovation and Opportunities for Reaching Indonesia's Teachers, Administrators, and Students (USAID PRIORITAS) project.

Funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the contract, worth more than $83 million, will allow RTI and its project partners to continue working with the Government of Indonesia to provide the resources needed to improve the quality of teaching and learning in both primary and junior secondary schools across the country.

The project will also extend the capacity of local and provincial governments to coordinate, plan, manage and finance education services and encourage parental and community involvement, particularly in supporting children in early grades and assuring a smooth transition from primary to junior secondary schools.

"With a focus on ensuring the local capacity to improve teaching and learning, USAID PRIORITAS will work with all levels of government to expand data-based decision making, communication and coordination," said Stuart Weston, RTI's chief of party for the project. "Our aim is to ensure that school districts have the resources they need to help children learn and to improve school management, teacher training and parental participation."

A primary goal of the program will be to help prepare new teachers to enter the classroom by providing support to teacher training institutes. The project team will also support provincial education offices to strengthen in-service training for district and school administrators related to school management, financial analysis and governance.

USAID PRIORITAS will work with more than 100 school districts in 10 provinces, with a focus on schools in economically disadvantaged areas. The far-reaching project will build on the successes of previous USAID projects, including the three recently completed Decentralized Basic Education projects and the earlier Managing Basic Education project.

"RTI has played a pivotal role in supporting educational improvement in Indonesia since the Indonesian government transferred the control, ownership and responsibility of school assets to districts and provinces 10 years ago," said Alastair Rodd, RTI's home office technical manager for the project. "USAID PRIORITAS provides an excellent opportunity to extend RTI's strong partnership with USAID and the Government of Indonesia while contributing to the USAID goal of improving the reading skills of 100 million children worldwide by 2015."

Partner organizations on USAID PRIORITAS include the Education Development Center, World Education and Florida State University. Also involved as resource organizations are Sampoerna School of Education, SMERU, Sesame Workshop/Creative Indigo Productions' JalanSesama, Room to Read and Urban Planet.